Hobson released; no move imminent

Auburn Hills, Mich. - The Bucks released guard Darington Hobson on Friday morning, bringing their roster to 14 players, one shy of the league maximum.

But coach Scott Skiles said no move was imminent to fill the empty roster spot.

"We're always looking but it's not, right at this moment, leading to anything," Skiles said after the morning shoot-around at the Palace of Auburn Hills. "It's just a decision we made and it does free up a roster spot.

"But as of today it doesn't have any relevance on any other move."

The Bucks have won three straight games entering Friday night's game against Detroit, which has lost seven in a row. Milwaukee (10-11) has a chance to climb back to the .500 mark with a victory.

Hobson was the 37th overall pick in the 2010 draft but had a serious hip injury which required surgery and caused him to miss all of last season.

He was waived last season but re-signed by the Bucks on Dec. 10. He appeared in five games for Milwaukee and played a total of 39 minutes. Recently he played for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Development League.

"We like how our guys are playing right now," Skiles said. "We're always trying to get better of course, but at the same time we feel like we may be getting a little stability right now and we want to ride it out."

Skiles said the Bucks will face a tough task in beating Detroit after defeating them twice already at the Bradley Center in the past few weeks.

"These are all NBA players; they're all great players and they all have pride," Skiles said. "They're going to be ready. This is not a place we've played very well in, generally.

"This is a trap game. We had a big emotional win the other night (against Miami). We know who we're facing tomorrow night. We just have to be careful. We've got to make sure we're focused.

"If we come out and play the way we've been playing, we'll have a good night."

The Bucks return home to face the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night and a big crowd is expected for the first 2012 visit of league MVP Derrick Rose and his teammates.